Teens arraigned in break-in case

COLDWATER  Two teens  Brandon Tarrell, 18 and Brayton Jennings, 17  were arraigned Monday on breaking and entering charges for thefts from the Lightening Quick Stop in Quincy between May 16 and 28.

According to court documents Timothy Mast, 18, of Coldwater, is also a co-defendant in the same case.

Money, coins and lottery tickets were stolen on three different occasions in over night break-ins. Michigan State Police (MSP) notified the lottery commission of tickets numbers of the thefts and were called after a person turned in one of the stolen tickets as a winner at the Lightening Quick Stop store.

According to the probable cause affidavit, that person led troopers to Jennings who admitted he and Mast broke into the store.

Branch County District Judge Brent Weigle set bond at $50,000 for Tarrell and Jennings. Lansing defense attorney Craig Davis asked for a lower bond for Jennings.

Weigle noted Jennings has a series of conviction in juvenile court including a larceny and three thefts from a motor vehicle. He is also a suspect in three other crimes, Weigle said.

MSP investigated several break-ins along the same stretch of US-12. Quincy Collision and the Health Center, both neighbors of the Sunoco Lightning Quick Stop gas station at 127 W. Chicago St. in the Village of Quincy, were also broken into.

At the time authorities said the break-ins at the gas station netted the thieves over $10,000. Tarrell was seen taking stolen coins to a change machine at Meijer to obtain paper bills and implicated. Troopers also found him in possession of an item taken from the Health Center.

Tarrell is on a 2-year district court probation for breaking into a car in May last year. The affidavit said he implicated both other teens.